Fergie's Tech Blog

More alarms over cell phone E911

Ben Charny writes in C|Net News:

A sizable percentage of U.S. cell phone subscribers aren't upgrading to new phones as quickly as they used to, throwing into doubt a major initiative designed to improve wireless 911 calling, cell phone industry groups say.

Late Thursday, a large number of U.S. operators asked federal regulators to suspend rules that, by year's end, require 95 percent of their subscribers to have handsets capable of sending details about their geographic location to emergency operators.

The companies argue that about 15 percent of U.S. cell phone subscribers are happy enough with their service and handsets to hold on to their old phones longer than most users do. On average, cell phone customers replace their handsets within 18 to 24 months. Those who hold on to them are less likely to upgrade to new location-sensitive handsets, argue two trade groups, the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association, and the Rural Cellular Association.

posted by Fergie @ 7/01/2005 12:33:00 PM